Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 3

The Arizona Republic SECTION FORTS WEDNESDAY MAY 2, 1990 -Ar II -A Sims lT Js ti J1 Ji 0 is cotton to 10 ii ill i ii ii ii ii i KJ, no flu-by-night guard, to direct Phoenix in Game 3 sure PLAYOFFS Thunder Dan a reflection of Jazz's Sloan Everyone likes what he sees in the Suns' Dan Majerle. He's hustle personified, the small-school product with big-time desire. Mind's eye is filled with his daring driving through 7-foot-4 Mark Eaton, dunking 7-7 Manutc Bol, slicking like a wet T-shirt to the likes of Larry Bird and Charles Barkley. Name another 6-6 guy who can cover a 6-2 guard or a 7-foot center. Yep, everyone likes iff rYi By Lee Shappell The Arizona Republic It's a best-of-three series now, and the Suns have the home-court edge on the Utah Jazz.

The Suns are confident they can hold it and advance to the Western Conference semifinals against the Los Angeles Lakers-Houston Rockets winner. "Basically, I build that's all I do," Suns Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons said. A. case can be built for, the seemingly ominous task at hand for the Jazz. They've lost nine in a row here over the past four years.

They've won only four games ever in Veterans Memorial Coliseum. But this is the playoffs. The Jazz's ego is just as wounded after its 105-87 loss at home Sunday as the Suns' was after their 113-96 loss in the Salt Palace in Game 1. The Suns got mad, and then they got even. Fitzsimmons anticipates a similar approach from the Jazz in Game 3 tonight (7:40, Veterans Memorial Coliseum).

"All those numbers don't mean a thing, Fitzsimmons said. "The Jazz have a lot of pride just like our players They're professionals, and this is the playoffs. "I'll be shocked if the Jazz don't come back mean and ready just like we did Sunday up there. It's true if we hold our home court in these next two games we win the series. But we aren't fooled by that, It's going to be extremely difficult to beat the Jazz in two games here." The Suns aren't interested in going back to Salt Lake with the series riding on a fifth game.

"We've won two of our last three there, so you wouldn't think the odds would be good, as good a team as they are at home," Fitzsimmons said. So the challenge Fitzsimmons is See SUNS, pageE2 Friday Utah 11 3, Phoenix 96 Sunday Phoenix 105, Utah 87 Today Utah at Phoenix, 7:30 p.m. Friday Utah at Phoenix, TBA Sunday, May 6 V. Phoenix at Utah, TBA if necessary 7 NBA PLAYOFFS Tuesday's Games Cleveland 1 22, Philadelphia 95 Milwaukee 119, Chicago 112 Detroit 108, Indiana 96 Houston 1 1 4, LA Lakers 108 Portland 106, Dallas 92 San Antonio 131, Denver 120 Today's Games Boston at New York Utah at Phoenix 1 Dan Majerle. But none with more genuine appreciation than Jerry Sloan, coach of the Utah Jazz, with whom the Suns do playoff battle tonight at the Coliseum.

"That's because Jerry sees himself in Majerle," Suns Coach Cotton Fitz-simmons said. This is not a new thought with Cotton. When Majerle was drafted, amid boos from a local audience in 1988, Cotton called Majerle a combination of Dick Van Arsdale and Sloan. BOB HURT Republic Columnist Michael MeisterThe Arizona RepuWifc Suns Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons watches his club practice for Game 3 tonight against the Utah Jazz. To Fitzsimmons, it's Medal of Honor stuff to mention Majerle in the same paragraph with Sloan, for 11 years an undersize overachiever for the Chicago Bulls and Washington Bullets.

"Sloan was as tough as any guy who has played in the NBA in the 20 years I've been around it," Cotton said. Rockets stave off elimination, end Lakers' streak WHEN BULLS FLY "i I iZ -A 4 is quarter and was taken out for most of it. "That's a decision a coach has to live with," Chaney said. "We (have) a great defense when he's in there. When he's out, we're suspect.

"But tonight we were able to buy some time until we could bring him back in the game." Houston's starters all scored in double figures. "We've played well before when he has been out of the eame." Flovd said. By Michael A. Lutz The Associated Press HOUSTON The Houston Rockets came through on half of Coach Don Chaney's guarantee Tuesday night and stopped the Lakers' first-round winning streak. Otis scored 27 points to lead the Rockets to a 114-108 victory over Los Angeles in their NBA series.

After the Rockets fell behind, 2-0, in the best-of-five series, Chaney guaranteed the Rockets would win games in The Summit on Tuesday and Thursday, forcing a deciding game in Los Angeles on Sunday. "The guarantee thing was just a ploy to get our guys going," Chaney said. "I still respect the Lakers, but we have another game to go before we go back out there." Sleepy Floyd scored 23 points and set a club playoff record with 18 assists as Houston cut its deficit to 2-1 in the series. The Lakers had won 20 consecutive first-round games since losing to Houston in 1981. Akeem Olajuwon scored 22 points and had seven rebounds, but drew his fourth foul 26 seconds into the third "We've got players who can play with anyone, whether he is in or out." James Worthy led the Lakers with 26 points.

Magic Johnson had! 17. points, but none in the fourth quarter. "We shouldn't force up shots like we did that their double-team coaxed us into," Johnson said. 'Tonight, they made the plays they needed to offensively and defensively in the last five minutes. "We have to play 48 minutes, not 40 minutes." I Floyd's basket with 22 seconds to go broke a string of eight straight points by the Lakers that had cut Houston's lead to 111-108 with 46 seconds to play.

Majerle, with a tad of embarrassment, acknowledges he never saw Sloan play. He would like to see some films of him. He has heard his name before. A big fish who got away To Sloan, Majerle is the big fish who got away. With each re-tclling, Majerle gets bigger and bigger.

Sloan first disowns the comparison. He says Majerle "is a much better player than I was." Sloan claims former teammate Tom Boerwinkle, a 290-pounder, used to beat him down the floor although not for 48 minutes, he added with a grin. "Majerle is a tough-ass guy, boy," Sloan said. "You don't know how bad we wanted to draft him. We were on him long before anybody.

That's a fact. We loved Dan Majerle. Then he made the Olympic team and everybody loved Dan Majerle. But our people saw something there long before that." Tough. That's Majerle.

On March 19, he suffered a grade-two separation of his right shoulder against San Antonio but kept playing. Trainer Joe Proski says the shoulder hurt so much that Majerle was reaching for the resin with; his left arm during timeouts. "His right arm was just hanging there," Proski said. "He just sucked it up. In all my years, 95 percent of the players who had that injury wouldn't have played the rest of the season." Thunder Dan was back in nine games.

His outside shooting has suffered. He acknowledges he's not hitting like he was early in the season. Cotton could care less, explaining, "Whatever he gets me on the offensive end is a plus. He has total toughness, the total defensive concept He can guard guys any size. It doesn't bother him.

He likes the challenge. Mark West is probably stronger, but Majerle's agility makes him better." Human trampoline Majerle is a scorer more than a shooter. He uses his elbow and hips to clear the way to the bucket He's a human trampoline. Bigger rebounders seem to bounce off him. "I was really shooting well in the summer," Majerle said.

"Yeah, I'm struggling. It's something I have to improve on. But it seems when I get going and take it to the basket a lot, my outside' shot gets Whether the shots fall, the intensity rarely wavers. "The big thing with Majerle is to keep his intensity level down," Fitzsimmons said. "He gets too hyper and that causes him to make bad decisions." Circumstances created Majerle's work ethic.

He was always the underdog, he said, playing for a high school in northern Michigan that was a four-hour ride away from worthy foes and then playing at Central Michigan, a Brand in college basketball. Physical basketball runs in the family. Dan remembers his dad, now a barber, as a tough banger in city league basketball. His younger brother, now 6-8, is a senior and star at Central Michigan. It was Majerle's older brother who made him game-tough.

"We had some wars in the back yard," Dan recalls with fondness. Has Dan Majerle ever let down, not played as hard as he could? "Yeah, once in a while," he said. "And it's probably the worst feeling you can ever have because you know you did not give 100 percent and you feel terrible about it" Douma rights self, fans 13 in ASU win pi fff'i'Ai, i i iff BASEBALL INSIDE WHITE SOX: Rip Nolan Ryan, win 5th straight, E3. DEREK LlLLIQUIST: Hits 2 homers as Braves roll, E3. I EXPANSION: NL timetable to be told June 14, E3.

By Bob Eger The Arizona Republic After a succession of pressure-packed games in the Pac-10 Southern Division, Arizona State's 84 victory over Nevada-Las Vegas on Tuesday night at Packard Stadium could be dismissed as insignificant But don't try to tell that to junior left-hander Todd Douma or to ASU's coaching staff. Douma (12-3), who hadn't survived the second inning in his past two starts, regained his earlier form as the third-ranked Sun Devils (43-13) won for the 27th time in their past 30 tJr Douma allowed seven hits and four runs in 7 innings and struck out a career-high 13. Three home runs accounted for all of UNLVs runs. "That was much better," ASU Coach Jim Brock said. "The guy on the mound has to have confidence and the coaches have to have confidence in him.

I think we ail feel more confident after tonight. I 1 1 Douma said he had been over' throwing, perhaps in an attempt to impress pro scouts. "I've got to keep reminding myself that I'm more effective at this level when I throw 3 miles an hour slower, not 3 miles an hour faster," he said. "We have some big games coming up, and it's going to be important for me to contribute." Mike Kelly and Fernando Vina! each had three hits and drove in two runs for ASU. Kelly has 72 RBl8, tops in the Six-Pac and second' nationally.

Kelly was slowed by a strained; See DOUKA, page El Morry GashThe Associated Press Michael Jordan drives Tuesday night and finds Milwaukee's Jack Sikma in his way. The Bucks beat the Bulls, 1 19-112, despite Jordan's 48 points. Jordan lost the ball with the score tied and two minutes to go and Sikma made a three-point basket with 25 seconds left to help secure the win. The Bulls lead the series, 2-1. Inside Cards kickers lining up behind Del Greco TV Highlights NBA: Celtics at Knicks, TNT.

5 p.m.; Jazz at Suns, Ch. 45, 7:30 p.m. Complete listings, E2 me. So it's nothing new." In this case, the Cardinals have signed two free-agent kickers, Nicholl and Auburn's Win Lyle, and still are negotiating with free agent Vince-Abbott Special teams coach Pete Rodriguez said he's uncertain the club will bring that many kickers to training camp, but "this gives us an INDEX: Briefs E2 NBA E2 Baseball E3 NFL E4 Auto racing ES Scoreboard E6-8 Golf notes E7 Prep notes E7 Driving toward perfection The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving at Firebird International Raceway means different things to different drivers. E5.

Meltdown of Ping irons Karsten Manufacturing plans to melt down the clubheads of much of its remaining stock of the old but popular Ping Eye-2 irons. E8. history, would rather have security like punter Rich Camarillo, who doesn't have any competition in camp. But Del Greco is used to being placed on the spot "I think naturally, deep down, anybody would like to be a little more relaxed," he said, "but I haven't gone into any training camp where there weren't at least two guys going against said Tuesday during a break in the team's minicamp at East High School. "I think Al will become better if he has competition.

I think every position picks up if you have someone pushing you. I think Al accepts that wholeheartedly." Del Greco, who connected on 18 of 26 field-goal attempts last season, the fifth-best percentage (69.2) in team By Lloyd Herberg The Arizona Republic Now that Kevin Nicholl has caught up on his sleep, he's hoping to cause some restless nights for the Cardinals' incumbent kicker, Al Del Greco. Call it competition, said Coach Joe. Bugel, who wouldn't want it any other way. "Al's our kicker right now, Bugel v--.